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bookzombieSo I'd normally post a bit about how the show is going during the week of a run but this hasn't really happened this week. There are reasons, familiar to those of you who have been following the brief updates on Facebook.
Firstly, the show actually went pretty well in the end, much better then I really expected - although there was still some issues particularly with the chorus harmonies. At the aftershow speeches Neil, our Musical Director, admitted that he had over-committed himself during the rehearsal period and didn't give us enough of his time (which is true) and also that he really does need to conduct rather than play in the orchestra during the week (also true: we are an amateur society and we need to be conducted.) And the director continued to be his cheery, 'praise is for wimps' self...
(I'd normally spare you all by putting the details behind a cut, but honestly my brain just isn't working well enough right now to remember how!)
Anyway, what's my health beef this time? We had the tech rehearsal last Sunday and during the night afterwards I woke up with a sore back. The next day it was really sore all day but I just put it down to carrying around a heavy prop a few times during the day and probably pulled a muscle a bit. Before bed on Monday after the dress rehearsal I took a couple of co-codamol and shortly afterwards the pain disappeared but then I started to hurt around the front of my stomach just below the diaphragm. This remained painful all night and I just couldn't get any sleep. Only a hot bath at about 4:30am helped at all.
The next day was very painful all day around the front, but also spreading back to the part of the back that had hurt on Monday. Also I lost my appetite and my eyes got bloodshot (probably from the lack of sleep!) I took some painkillers which didn't seem to touch it and got pretty much nothing done all day; even reading was beyond me as I just couldn't concentrate. I got through the first performance okay and tried to read in bed afterwards and ended up throwing a book across the room in frustration when I just couldn't find a painless position to read in. So I called NHS Direct and talked through the symptoms. This was only semi-helpful as the nurse I spoke to got fixated on the fact that I'm taking drugs to reduce acid reflux and therefore it must be related to that. So general advice and 'speak to the doctor if it doesn't get better' is what I got.
It didn't get better. So before the performance on Wednesday I got an emergency doctor's appointment (happily with Dr Boucher, my actual doctor, who is a fantastic GP). After taking a urine sample and doing the basic tests on this and prodding me about a bit, she decided that it was likely to be a Urinary Tract Infection - possibly appendicitis but unlikely - and put me on antibiotics while we wait for the full test results to come back (early next week). The next two nights were almost sleepless again (but featuring lots of hot baths!) - I probably had about 5 hours sleep altogether in 10-15 minute dozes over four nights.
Friday morning I phoned the doctor again, told her about the pain keeping me awake and asked if she had any suggestions. She suggested that I go and see her again! This time she took some blood samples to get my white cell count checked to make sure I haven't got an abscess (which again is probably unlikely) and put me on the strongest perscription co-codamol.
And I have to tell you those things are bloody marvelous! I took some just before leaving for the evening performance and I was positively high - as well as pain free - by the time I got there! I took more before going to bed and woke up hurting in the early hours of Saturday morning so took my next lot then. And I haven't had to take any since (yet)! So I can only assume that either I've got a lot of the drug still in my system or the antibiotics have now taken hold (hopefully the latter: the not-so-good side effect of the drugs has been that I have been left rather breathless after a small amount of movement.)
So today I've got a little pain in my back but not enough to bother taking painkillers and hopefully I'm on the mend again (still curious about what the various tests will say, though.)
But am I fed up with getting one thing after another in the last few months. It would be really nice to get my health back and start exercising again. Here's hoping!
Firstly, the show actually went pretty well in the end, much better then I really expected - although there was still some issues particularly with the chorus harmonies. At the aftershow speeches Neil, our Musical Director, admitted that he had over-committed himself during the rehearsal period and didn't give us enough of his time (which is true) and also that he really does need to conduct rather than play in the orchestra during the week (also true: we are an amateur society and we need to be conducted.) And the director continued to be his cheery, 'praise is for wimps' self...
(I'd normally spare you all by putting the details behind a cut, but honestly my brain just isn't working well enough right now to remember how!)
Anyway, what's my health beef this time? We had the tech rehearsal last Sunday and during the night afterwards I woke up with a sore back. The next day it was really sore all day but I just put it down to carrying around a heavy prop a few times during the day and probably pulled a muscle a bit. Before bed on Monday after the dress rehearsal I took a couple of co-codamol and shortly afterwards the pain disappeared but then I started to hurt around the front of my stomach just below the diaphragm. This remained painful all night and I just couldn't get any sleep. Only a hot bath at about 4:30am helped at all.
The next day was very painful all day around the front, but also spreading back to the part of the back that had hurt on Monday. Also I lost my appetite and my eyes got bloodshot (probably from the lack of sleep!) I took some painkillers which didn't seem to touch it and got pretty much nothing done all day; even reading was beyond me as I just couldn't concentrate. I got through the first performance okay and tried to read in bed afterwards and ended up throwing a book across the room in frustration when I just couldn't find a painless position to read in. So I called NHS Direct and talked through the symptoms. This was only semi-helpful as the nurse I spoke to got fixated on the fact that I'm taking drugs to reduce acid reflux and therefore it must be related to that. So general advice and 'speak to the doctor if it doesn't get better' is what I got.
It didn't get better. So before the performance on Wednesday I got an emergency doctor's appointment (happily with Dr Boucher, my actual doctor, who is a fantastic GP). After taking a urine sample and doing the basic tests on this and prodding me about a bit, she decided that it was likely to be a Urinary Tract Infection - possibly appendicitis but unlikely - and put me on antibiotics while we wait for the full test results to come back (early next week). The next two nights were almost sleepless again (but featuring lots of hot baths!) - I probably had about 5 hours sleep altogether in 10-15 minute dozes over four nights.
Friday morning I phoned the doctor again, told her about the pain keeping me awake and asked if she had any suggestions. She suggested that I go and see her again! This time she took some blood samples to get my white cell count checked to make sure I haven't got an abscess (which again is probably unlikely) and put me on the strongest perscription co-codamol.
And I have to tell you those things are bloody marvelous! I took some just before leaving for the evening performance and I was positively high - as well as pain free - by the time I got there! I took more before going to bed and woke up hurting in the early hours of Saturday morning so took my next lot then. And I haven't had to take any since (yet)! So I can only assume that either I've got a lot of the drug still in my system or the antibiotics have now taken hold (hopefully the latter: the not-so-good side effect of the drugs has been that I have been left rather breathless after a small amount of movement.)
So today I've got a little pain in my back but not enough to bother taking painkillers and hopefully I'm on the mend again (still curious about what the various tests will say, though.)
But am I fed up with getting one thing after another in the last few months. It would be really nice to get my health back and start exercising again. Here's hoping!
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(no subject)
Date: 2009-12-06 07:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-12-06 10:23 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-12-07 02:24 pm (UTC)Hope you're feeling better and all the recent health problems will soon be a thing of the past.